Quick review on North’s 2016 kites and twintips

North is a big brand as in very well known around the world, but also in terms of the amount of different types of hardware. For 2016 North has roughly 8 different kites, 10 twintips and 8 different wave boards. An incredible amount and most of them are redesigned every year. Is this redesign a marketing driven thing or can we pin point some real improvements? To give you an hint; most North quiver is not really changed but tweaked.

We had the chance to ride most of the 2016 equipment for a couple of hours. Below you will find some highlights of the first impressions we had from it. In a further stage we give you more detailed reviews on all main stream kites and twintips.

Jaime

The Jaime has been in the North kiteboarding range for over ten years. We rated the 2015 version as a fast, upwind miracle but a bit stiff. It clearly is faster than the more comfortable (especially on the landings) Team Series but also has less pop. Apart from the graphics hard to judge in one session if the 2016 version really feels different from 2015. However it’s outline for 2016 is definitely changed. It’s wider to make you pop better and your landings easier. According to North the new Jaime is now more a freestyle board with a new Carbon Beam construction, which should give the board a lively and eager feeling on the water.

North 2016 Gambler and Hyperlite POP boots

 

Gambler (on Pop boots from Hyperlite)

A park and wakestyle, very curved and flexible board. To be used on flat water preferably with some kickers and sliders. But it is not an obvious choice for most of us. The Gambler is very slow and won’t go upwind. Unlike we have
seen before with other boards (like the F-one Acid, labelled as new School or the wake-style performance Bucca from Vanhunks) using the Gambler out of its intended usage is a  big no-no. If you use where its meant for this, hit the park on the kite or the cable, the 2016 Gambler has a real nice new feature: The Track System is positioned in one line, so boots can be ridden on both edges. This way the Gambler can be switched and used -in theorey- much longer. The new double concave offers quite good grip so you should easily be able to ride it without fins.

The 2016 POP boots clearly changed a lot from 2015. They seemed changed both in shape (wider nose) and stiffness. Although it is a bit unfair to compare a used (2015) boot to a new boot, it still felt like the 2016 POP boot is harder, not to say less comfortable, on the inside.

Team Series

Team Series bottom differences from 2015

The Team Series board, now at 999,- Euro’s, is part of the top end line of North. We reviewed the 2015 version concluding it, although not being the fastest or at its best going upwind, has a good combination of pop and comfort. The first few sessions we had with the 2016 version of the TS didn’t reveal any major differences. Some details did change, like the shape of the bottom, specifically the bottom side has different channels as in 2015. Something to investigate further when we have a chance to ride the board a bit longer. 

 

 

Vegas

Bridle options Vegas 2016

The non bridled 100% freestyle Vegas is tweaked up a bit from 2015. The Vegas -of course- still needs a fair amount of input and probably has the worst wind range of all North kites, but when used properly in the right conditions (which is not too underpowered) is the most rewarding kite from the North range.

It has almost unlimited setting options, both on the bridles as on the tips (on the contrary for example to the Rebel  which just has one option). Aaron Hadlow gives his explanation on the different settings in a video here. To judge the changes to the 2015 version we need to take the kite out a lot longer, which we certainly hope to do so.

North Dice 2016

Dice

If it was a fish, the Dice would be a dolphin; friendly, playful, fast and everybody likes to touch it. The Dice, 2015, was our favourite North kite. A good cross over kite if you can’t choose, usable for most riding styles and probably the best choice for 90% of the kiters out there. For this reason the Dice will have our first review on the 2016 North kites. And yes, the 2016 version has been improved from 2015. Smoother and a bit more low end.

Rebel

The old time favourite for the numerous freeriders out there. It’s the ultimate jumping machine with exceptional hangtime. The Rebel has it’s own kite category. You hate it or you love it. Although not my favourite type of kite, it’s North’s pinnacle for a long time. And there is a reason for that. The low end of this kite is really incredible and jumping is made very easy. You don’t have to be technically perfect to boost huge airs. Nothing has changed so far in 2016. The pop is amazing and hang-time is like before, crazy. The low-end keeps surprising when everybody is on foil kites or 14+ a rebel 12 does the job. The kite is a bit more technical then others, its doesn’t like that you keep pulling the bar, it needs a little bit of breath before it gives what you expect. The aspect ratio of the 2016 kites have been changed. The smaller sizes in the range now feature a lower aspect ratio while the bigger ones got an higher aspect ratio for higher jumps and better hangtime.

Split point Quad bar

Quad bar

The 2016 Quad bar didn’t change much except for one major detail. The way the front line split and how it works out when using your safety release has been redesigned completely. It now has a metal tube connection where the 2015 version just had 2 rings. We didn’t like this 2-ringed solution North came up with (initially end of 2015 The North Quad bar turned up with a square piece of plastic which damaged the front line). The 2016 split looks much better, but has one disadvantage; The front lines are unequal in length. A small detail which will only be a hassle when replacing one of them; Ordering it at your local shop you should at least give the following information: “Can I have the red front line, 22m, 2016, North Quad bar version please”. For the rest this amazing multi adjustable bar (have a look at the 2016 5th element video which explains also the Quad features) is unchanged from 2015.

Most of the products described here are already for sale. Please note that not all 2016 versions (for example the Evo) are on the market yet.

List prices (for Europe) have gone up from 2015 to 2016 about 10-12%

North Dice 9m 2016 (3rd version)

North Dice 9 meter 2016

Probably the nicest surprise of 2015 was the North Dice with it’s quick response, direct, light, wide wind range and an amazing quick depower on the bar made this truly do it all kite almost everybody’s friend. No wonder we were very curious for it’s offspring. The 2016 Dices were released in the beginning of september and luckily we were already able to get our hands on a 9 meter.

We were so excited to test the Dice 2016 we took it out the first time the wind did hit the coast. Unfortunately the wind was very light with just 16-17 knots of real on shore wind and big waves compared to the strength of the wind. So we did not expect we could take out the 9 meter, but curiosity killed the cat. Our lightest test kiter decided to give it a try and didn’t come back for at least an hour. Needless to say she liked the 2016 Dice and the kite already had an amazing low end in 2015. After she came back I could not resist to give it a try myself, 25 kilograms heavier then her, and even I could ride the kite in this light weather conditions. The low end is definitely better than last year but what more has been changed?

Bull ZigZag 10m 2015

Bull Sails in Europes wind capital Tarifa has probably one of the most friendly owners and personnel you can imagine. Without asking we were given a guided tour in their workspace and their Research and design are. A very nice offer as it is not by default that you get to see everything. The owner was also very open about the position of his brand. “It’s for the people who want something else than everyone else already has.”  Except that their kites are not widely known and therefore very rare on the water in most places outside Spain, there is another fine thing about Bull kites they cost a lot less then most other kite brands.

We already tested the Joker from Bull. No we were able to test the colourful  ZigZag 2015 (fifth edition). This so called do-it-all kite is according to Bull the perfect one-fits-all solution kite. With nearly 900 Euro’s this is one of the cheaper kites we have tested so far.

Peter Lynn Escape 9m 2015

Peter Lynn’s “pulley”

Peter Lynn; a company that makes kites for or over 40 years from a country that also is the home of several former kite world champions like Youri Zoon and Kevin Langeree: the Netherlands.
After several decades of developing foil kites, originally starting with Peter Lynn in New Zealand, the Peter Lynn company started to produce tube kites. So the company has a lot of experience and is perfectly located in a wind driven country. So far, so good. But what can we expect from their kites? We have tested the 2015 Peter Lynn Escape 9m.

Test twintip North Team Series 138*41cm 2015

North Team Series 2015

How much better is a twintip that costs approximately a 1000,- euro’s compared to cheaper twintips with similar features? We tested the North Team Series 138*41 cm 2015 to get the answer.

North online board selection tool

North produces a large quiver of kiteboards. With 10 different (in 2015) twintip boards to choose from it’s a good thing they have made an online tool to point you in the right direction. When you set this tool to “100% freestyle” it suggests 3 twintips; The Team Series, the Team Series Hadlow version and the already tried and tested Jaime.

 

Test: Bull Joker 8m 2015

Bull Kites are designed right at one of the kiteboarding capitals of the world; in Tarifa (Spain), with several large R&D area’s, including a shop where you buy the kites directly from the enthusiastic and friendly designers. Bull just released it’s 2015 kite models. We had the chance to test the 2015 Joker 8m, the third version. It turned out to be two kites in one and on top of that it is also a few hundred Euro’s less than most other brands.

Bull has three lines of kites. The Zig Zag (do it all kite), the Shortcut (Freestyle) and the Joker. The Joker is described as dynamic and power oriented riding. Send your steering impulses and the animal awakes. We were not sure what that should mean, but we will try to describe what we came across. The Dutch distributors have seen our Bull test review concept and made us clear that a big part of the aim of the kite is “power wave”.

Test: Ozone Edge 9m V7

Air time, with the capital A. This Ozone kite really is something different than other kites. It is all about jumping. Of course the kite can do a lot more, but it  beats all our previous tested kites in air time. We tested the 7th version of the Ozone Edge. Although it is not the newest version (the v8 is just released), we still want to tell our experience with this extraordinary kite.

The Ozone Edge is not only designed for big air but also to win race contests; taken riders to the top of race podiums around the world. Our main question? Can an average kiter go big and enjoy the kite on a twintip?

Review: Slingshot RPM 8m 2015

While the newest 2016 models of Slingshot are just released, we noticed a shift in models.  It seems that the new wave kite Wave SST pushes the Rally 2016 more to the position the RPM used to have. Will this fifth version of 2015 RPM be the last version of the famous RPM? We tested it while admitting the RPM appeals to us much more than the Rally, mainly since the Rally seems much slower.

the RPM 2015 is the fifth version of a kite which became famous when Youri Zoon won the 2011 PKRA freestyle competition with the RPM. But Slingshot is also a brand with a big name. It is generally known for its bomb proof quality, but for the RPM we have heard too many rumours that it has a weak point which makes the kite snap after a couple of years of usage, or even sooner. However the 2015 version -as mentioned in the Slingshot product video– should be reinforced on this point.

Test: Best GP 9m 2015

Best GP 9m 2015

After establishing that the Best TS already is  a kite for advanced riders, we wondered how even more advanced the Best GP is. The Freestyle oriented GP is designed to be even more “for the pro’s”. We tested the GP 9m, side by side with the North Vegas 2015, mainly to see to what extent average to advanced riders can benefit from it.

The five line Best GP has no bridles and a relatively small leading edge, 5 struts and 2 battens in the trailing edge. The battens were broken when we got the test kite. We don’t know if this is due to rough handling or due to normal use on the water, but it is something to keep an eye on.

Comparing line strengths

A nightmare for every kiter is a broken line. To make things worse it happens often right in the middle of a perfect session. Then the next step is thinking of a solution; buy the same lines or maybe look for an alternative?

Broken line North Quad bar due to wear out

Better to prevent than to cure

Probably the best way to prevent any breaking lines is investigating some time in what bar and lines you are using.

Which lines are the best?

One of the most important facts on a bar is the strength of the lines. A stronger line usually also means a thicker line. Thicker lines means more drag, so a stronger line will be beneficial for the durability but may also affect the flying aspects of the kite.